About 30 craftsmen and interested residents attended Robert Bury’s talk on “Lester Vaughan and Taunton’s Metal Artisans” on Saturday.

The event was hosted by the Old Colony Historical Society in coordination with the Society’s special Lester Vaughan exhibit — of which Bury donated a large portion.

“Lester Vaughan, nobody knew who he was until about 15 years ago… when I started collecting pewter,” said Bury, “and his pewter was so much better than everything else from his time.”

The exhibit contains nearly 200 of Vaughan’s pieces and will run until March 31.

On Saturday, Bury briefly discussed the history of metal artisans in Taunton before delving into the main focus of his presentation, Lester Vaughan.

Born in 1889 to Edwin Vaughan and Eva Sabine, Lester Vaughan lived at 22 West Britannia St. and began working at Reed & Barton as a spinner in 1909.

After six years with the company, Vaughan left to start his own pewter business out of his West Britannia Street home with his wife Maria — who made many of the handles for Vaughan’s pewter sets.

“They lived on the first floor, and Lester Vaughan had a pewter shop in his basement,” said Bury.

Over the years, Vaughan grew to become a well-respected and well-known pewter maker, although he was not a huge success in his early days.

“A lot of his stuff in those days were not used,” said Bury. “People had china, porcelain, decorative stuff. Although his stuff was extremely well-made.”

Vaughan became a member of the Boston Society of Arts and Crafts, and held many exhibitions with the society.

It was during this time, Bury said, that Vaughan became a master of his craft.

“The big thing he did was he spun most of his stuff,” said Bury, explaining that many industrial pewter sets were cast.

The process of spinning involved rotating a block of metal at high speed and forming it into a symmetrical piece, similar to working with clay on a lathe. In contrast, casting occurs when molten metal is poured into a mold and hardened.

Vaughan’s pieces were so well-made, in fact, that Eleanor Roosevelt ordered four of his coffee sets while she and Franklin Roosevelt lived in the White House.

“I’ve never seen a particular set like this,” said Bury of the coffee set Vaughan made for the Roosevelts.

According to Bury, Vaughan’s sister — who moved to Berkeley, Calif. — acted as an agent for Vaughan on the West Coast, which allowed him to expand beyond the Northeast.

“His markets were pretty much the Northeast and California,” said Bury. “…He sold at very prestigious places, Macy’s among those.”

According to Bury, Vaughan sold a three-piece pewter set for $40 — which would translate to $525 in 2012.

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“He didn’t sell cheap stuff,” said Bury.

Bury also said that a three-piece Vaughan pewter set could be purchased today for just over $100.

“It’s not expensive stuff,” said Bury. “It’s just beautifully made.”

Vaughan’s business, however, suffered greatly during World War II, and Vaughan ran out of material to make pewter by 1942.

“By 1942, (Vaughan had) no more materials, and money was running out,” said Bury. “…In 1955, they had to move out.”

Vaughan and his wife moved to Pleasant Street in Raynham.

“He tried to keep a business going in the basement of that little ranch house,” said Bury.

His Raynham business struggled for the rest of his life, and in 1961, Vaughan passed away at the age of 71.